The Breakings of Traditions
by Percabeth95
Summary: Rose Weasley, the daughter of Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, became interested the second her dad warned her not to get too close to him.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, I'm not sure how often I'll be able to update or how long this will continue, but I'm looking to finish out at least the Hogwarts years.**

**Disclaimer: The first portion of this is straight from JKR herself and I take no credit. From there on out I take credit for only the plotline, not the characters.  
**

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"Look who it is." Draco Malfoy was standing there with his wife and son, a dark coat buttoned up to his throat. His hair was receding somewhat, which emphasized the pointed chin. The new boy resembled Draco as much as Albus resembled Harry. Draco caught sight of Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny staring at him, nodded curtly, and turned away again.

"So that's little Scorpius," said Ron under his breath. "Make sure you beat him in every test, Rosie. Thank God you inherited your mother's brains."

"Ron, for heaven's sake," said Hermione, half stern, half amused. "Don't try to turn them against each other before they've even started school!"

"You're right, sorry," said Ron, but unable to help himself, he added, "Don't get too friendly with him, though, Rosie. Granddad Weasley would never forgive you if you married a pureblood."

******

Rose Weasley settled into her seat alongside her cousin, letting out a great sigh. "Aren't you excited to go to Hogwarts?"

For the first time that day Al looked completely carefree. Rose knew his older brother's taunts about Slytherin had been bothering him, but something seemed to have changed in his demeanor. He no longer seemed the scared boy who had been there a few minutes before.

"Abso-bloody-lutely!"

"Albus Severus! You'd better not take after your uncle on that, you know he was right horrible about swearing!" Rose swore she saw Al roll his eyes—in the most non-feminine way, of course.

As Rose turned away, laughing, she caught a glimpse of the white-haired boy from the train. _Scorpius Malfoy._ Albus turned, wondering what she was looking at, and Rose ducked her head away, hiding her expression.

"What was it?"

"I don't know, maybe a Wrackspurt got me." Al, as Rose's best friend, was perfectly aware that she held no tolerance for their Aunt Luna's imagination and was faking it. Well, it was not the imagination that bothered her, really, just the things she believes in that have come straight from it. However, he decided to let the subject drop.

Rose felt a bit ashamed. Though her father had specifically pointed him out—perhaps _because_ Ron had pointed him out—she had been quite interested to see him. She knew that her father would never approve of her being friends with the Malfoy boy. And so, from that point out she had a plan. He goes to snakey Slytherin, she goes to the lions of Gryffindor, neither can stand each other. They do exactly what their fathers want.

Boy was she wrong.

As they left the train, Rose felt a bit guilty for not speaking to Al for most of the trip, since she had been in her planning phase. As they plopped down into a boat, however, she was ready to go back into action. "Al, can you believe we're finally here? After everything we've heard? After riding that stupid train when we could have Flooed? Now we're riding the boats! Al, can you believe it?" As Rose and Al chatted along, Rose's leg bouncing from excitement, she occasionally would look around into the boats that surrounded theirs. A few times she pointed out to Al someone or something funny. The last time, though, she froze and fell silent, giving no acknowledgement that anyone else was around, completely ignoring her cousin.

This alerted Al, because before this she had not really stopped talking since they had entered the boat. When Al leaned over Rose's shoulder to see from her point of view, Rose shrieked, lost her balance, and grabbed Al to steady herself. Unfortunately, he didn't expect this and reflexively dislodged her from him. She fell into the water and splashed around frantically for a few seconds as Al called out for someone to help her.

Almost immediately, a boat containing only one student, a certain blond, was next to Rose. The blond reached his hand out.

"Come on, Weasley," the boy said. Al was trying to convince himself that Malfoy was sneering when the blond's voice changed dramatically. "Rose," he yelled out, as she sank quickly beneath the surface. In the blink of an eye, the Malfoy boy was in the water, fully clothed, trying to get Rose out. Al was astonished as the water lit up red and Scorpius and Rose came to the surface. Scorpius pulled himself into the boat, keeping a firm grip on Rose and helping her into the safe haven.

It was at this time that Rose realized what was going on. Malfoy had just, quite possibly, saved her life. She was sitting next to _Malfoy_, leaning against _him_. To her horror, a part of her didn't mind the proximity, and it was this that led her to turn away. Her cheeks red, she faced the other direction and asked, "What happened?"

"The Giant Squid. At first you were just struggling in the water, but you wouldn't come closer, though mine was the closest boat."

Rose nodded, still turned away. "I was in shock from falling." She had begun to turn her face toward Malfoy when he asked another question.

"What made you fall?"

Rose's head whipped right back to where it had been, her mind whirring at a million metres a second. She couldn't just say "_Oh, I was just watching you because I've found you so darned interesting since my dad said to stay away. Then when Al popped up I didn't want him noticing, of course, so I caused a distraction._" Yeah, that would work.

"Al," Rose admitted. "He surprised me." _Well, it's one half true,_ she thought.

Out of the corner of her eye, Rose saw Malfoy's face twitch in the direction of her cousin. Al stiffened and nodded. Rose wondered if boys had some sort of silent communication abilities that girls didn't know about.

"Don't worry," Malfoy assured her, "He'll be taking good care of you when we get back to the castle. Until then I'll just have to do." Scorpius purposefully did not speak what he felt, showing no sign of anything, from hate to admiration to sympathy. He set down the cold, hard facts as just that. He was, however, relieved that Potter had gotten his message. _Don't do something ridiculous like that again,_ Scorpius had said. _I don't want her in harm's way._

_ Neither do I_, had been the reply.

Al strongly suspected what Rose had been doing before she fell, but he refused to bring it up. He knew from years of being Rose's best friend that if he asked, Rose would close up fast. If he waited, though, she might just open up.

When the boats bumped up against the shoreline, Scorpius immediately jumped out and offered Rose a hand. She rose onto the bank gracefully, yet she still shivered. Scorpius chanced a glance at the boat and realized his overcoat was still dry, lying over one of the boat's seats. He immediately grabbed the coat and wrapped it, and his arms, around Rose.

She stiffened as she felt this, but then allowed herself a moment to be warmed. Casting a quick glance around for Al, she stepped away from Scorpius, then turned around and gave her saviour a quick kiss on the cheek. She whispered, "Thank you," and ran to find her cousin.

Scorpius stood still for a moment, in full shock. Had Rose Weasley just _kissed him_? He forced himself to walk when he realized that the back of the queue was about to leave him behind. The confused boy didn't truly know why he cared, but he soon knew one thing. He was going to be a very different person from what his father had been.

Al, unknown to his cousin and Malfoy, had not been as absent from the proceedings as the others may have wished. He had seen his cousin's actions and was ready to confront her as soon as he encountered her, but when he saw how fragile she looked, he knew it could wait until after the sorting.

Al realized how different he felt from just a few hours before. Then he had been so scared of being sorted into Slytherin, but he thought perhaps his father's words had put some Gryffindor courage into him. He no longer felt scared, merely inclined to protect his cousin, even from herself.

Rose kept to herself as the group trudged up to the great castle. She barely heard the whispers coming from the people around her commenting on the beauty of the castle, the wonders done here, etc. She did keep an eye out for Al, though, as she traveled into the small room that would hold the first-years.

A hand grabbed her arm and Rose turned, expecting Albus, and saw Malfoy. "There you are," he said. "I think your cousin is looking for you." Sure enough, Al showed at that very moment. Rose stepped away from Malfoy, unsure if she had been too close.

"I say, my lady, I do realize Peeves was a bit of help those twenty years ago, but he has done nothing but make trouble ever since!" A ghost of a man, whose head seemed to wobble a bit too much, had just glided through the wall, oblivious to the many 11-year-olds watching him with wonder. The grey lady beside him allowed a grin to creep into her features as her friend carried on.

Apparently the Grey Lady pitied her friend, because she diverted him by pointing out, "Look, Sir Nicholas, young ones!" The man turned his head quickly and it wobbled quite a bit.

"Hello, new ones! I hope we get a good lot 'round for Gryffindor."

Professor Flitwick then chose to intervene by entering the room and squeaking a few calming words to the lot of excited first-years. "This is Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, resident ghost of Gryffindor house, and this is the Grey Lady, resident ghost of Ravenclaw house, the house of which I, Professor Flitwick, am Head. Now, I am going to escort you into the Great Hall where you will try on the Sorting Hat and be sorted into your respective houses." The entire group of children followed the teacher, and Rose felt it safe to say that she would really like Professor Flitwick.

As the first-years lined up in the Great Hall, Rose briefly wondered what it would be like to be sorted into a house other than Gryffindor. Surely Ravenclaw couldn't be that bad. Even Hufflepuff would be acceptable. After all, Neville—er, Professor Longbottom—his wife Hannah was a Hufflepuff. Before Rose had time to dwell any longer, a familiar voice was called.

"Malfoy, Scorpius," Professor Flitwick announced. Rose noticed the noise level of the hall decrease, and she wondered what would happen when Albus's name was called? She watched as Malfoy went to sit on the stool, quite reluctantly in her opinion, and allowed the Sorting Hat to rest on top of his head.

"Hmm...." The hat took a long time to decide. "You've a great mind, a smart boy you are. You aren't like your father was. He had some brain behind that skull of his, but he preferred to slither out of his tight spots as opposed to strategize...no, I know exactly where you belong. RAVENCLAW!" The silence was deafening in the hall as Scorpius slid down from his seat and made his way down. In a burst of shock, the hall erupted in a wave of cheers and applause, originated by his housemates.

Rose watched Malfoy walk down to his housemates with a genuine smile on his face, and felt a bit happy knowing the boy who saved her did not turn out to be a Slytherin. She waited, waited for the inevitable prospect of going to Gryffindor, waited for her cousin to be sorted.

"Narroway, Peyton...RAVENCLAW!"

"Ordway, Helen...SLYTHERIN!"

"Pickard, Jonathan...HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Potter, Albus."

The whispering started up as Al approached the stool. Apparently, some of his insecurities had returned. However, the moment the hat touched Al's head it shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!" Rose watched interestedly as her best friend made his way to the Gryffindor table where their entire family sat, or had at some point, save Teddy, who was a Ravenclaw like his mother. Her eyes wandered to the Ravenclaw table, and Rose wondered if that was where she really belonged.

"Standidge, Edward...HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Uruqhart, Joseph...SLYTHERIN!"

"Wadsworth, Susan...GRYFFINDOR!"

"Weasley, Rose."

As Rose dragged herself to the stool, she thought of Al to keep her going. He had made it, so could she. She wanted to plop herself onto the ground and die rather than be in front of so many people, but she allowed the Sorting Hat to be placed on her head.

"Yes, yes, another Weasley. What to do with you. I must admit, you'd not be a fit Slytherin. You're quite a nice girl, very loyal to her family, but you need to prove that you are your own person. And quite smart, you are, yes... That's it... Better be RAVENCLAW!"

Rose froze in her seat as every Weasley eye turned to her, and then every other eye as well. She ripped the hat off of her head as gracefully as possible, and gently stormed her way down the stairs. Some Ravenclaw started the clapping so by the time she sat she was getting half-hearted applause from the Hall.

Rose had only barely managed to find a seat at all, and when she did she was inwardly furious at who sat across from her.

Scorpius Malfoy wondered why Weasley didn't like being separate from her family. He would have done anything to get away from his. In fact, his father was going to throw a raging fit when he finds out what has happened.

Rose stared down into her chicken and dumplings, ready to fall over. Firstly she had fallen into the lake only to be saved by Malfoy, then she ended up a Ravenclaw, and her dad was probably going to die of a heart attack when he found out.

Which was why she wasn't going to tell him. She was a clever witch, she knew that her father could often be calmed by her mum when no one and nothing else was able to. Therefore she would write her mother and let her break the news.

******

_Dear Mum,_

_ 'lo, then. How was your day? Mine was fairly good, I think you'd say. I mean, first of all, my supposed biggest enemy about saved my life, then I k—nevermind, not going there—then two traditions are broken, one by me and one by the Malfoy boy. You see, he and I both ended up in Ravenclaw._

_ You might wonder why I have included Malfoy. Understand, here, that this is the boy that saved my life. On the boat ride to Hogwarts I was startled into falling into the lake. Apparently, the Squid had gone on a fishing spree, because according to Malfoy, I was quickly dragged underwater before he sent a __precise Stunning Spell at the Squid. After I sat next to him on his boat (somehow he got one of his own; he didn't seem pleased about it though), he gave me his coat and I still haven't given back because I'd forgotten until I wrote this. And then I kissed—oh, shoot, before you kill me let me finish the sentence because I didn't want to write it in the first place—I kissed him _on the cheek,_ telling him thank you. But since then? I can't talk to him, let alone give back his jacket, because I don't know what I'm doing._

_ Help me, Mum!_

_ Love from,_

_ Rose_

Rose did not feel satisfied that she had completed the task well enough, but the hour was nearing eight o'clock and students should no longer be in the corridors. She attached the letter to an owl's leg and sent it off with specific instructions to show itself only in front of Hermione Weasley when no one was accompanying her.

Doubtful that the owl would follow her requests, Rose wandered back to the castle toward the newly revealed Ravenclaw entrance. When she approached the eagle knocker, the question was posed to her.

"Tucked away in patient silence, cloaked in darkness, I sit.  
Like marrow in bone, like pith in bough, my essence encased.  
Claim me with skill and cunning, or I claim you in mystery.  
As main conducts water, as lens focuses light,  
Seized in alarm or borne in playful manipulation I channel your might.  
My master enabled, the poser frustrated.  
Lose me and you are lost, impotent as a squib.  
What am I?"

Rose thought frantically, frustrated that she could not think of the answer. My essence encased...channel your might...impotent as a squib... She let out a great sigh and collapsed to a sitting position on the ground, sure that she would be waiting outside all night. As she lay her head against the wall, she heard footsteps. Lifting her head, she searched for a place to hide. Finding none, she immediately feigned sleep, hoping that whoever it was would either not care to recognize her or just not know her.

"Weasley?"

Rose was slumped against the wall of the Ravenclaw common room as Scorpius returned from the owlery. Scorpius was honestly worried. He couldn't let the girl stay out all night.

"Would you repeat your riddle?" Rose heard him whisper, trying not to wake her up. _Vindictive git, taking advantage of the fact that I am helpless and useless to get one up on me and leave me alone, I'm sure._ Rose had no idea where the thought came from, but she almost had to bite her lip to keep everything from coming out.

Returning to her consciousness, Rose heard Malfoy answer, "A wand."

The knocker swung open, and Scorpius's hands almost began to sweat, but he kept it down. He hoped she wouldn't hate him for this... although he didn't know why it really mattered anyway. He reached down to where Weasley was sleeping and picked her up bridal style, ready to carry her into the common room.

Rose was surprised at Malfoy's strength as he agilely moved her from her position outside the Tower to the couch in the common room. Rose realized she would be alone in the common room and allowed Sleeping Rose to sleep-talk a bit. "Stay," she murmured.

Scorpius heard more substantial breaths come from Weasley's mouth, then he distinguished that she was dream-talking as he set her on the couch.

Rose knew he was going to dismiss it. She had to keep _someone _with her, no matter who. She reaches out groggily and grabs his arm gently, murmuring, "Stay."

Scorpius realized that Weasley was probably role-playing him in her dream—seeing him as another person and treating him as such. He allowed her loose grip on his arm to stay. He grabbed an almost-out-of-reach pillow and blanket and lay down on the ground. "Good night Weasley."

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**Okay, so PLZ PLZ PLZ review. It keeps me going!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I cannot believe how long it has been since I've been on! I apologize greatly and can honestly say I have no excuse. A mixture of writer's block, school, and just plain laziness have kept me off of here for a while. I hope you enjoy this!**

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Scorpius blinked a few times and took in his surroundings. A couch sat directly to his left, a pillow was under his head and a blanket over him, and finally, he realized he was in the common room. As he sat up, he saw a red-haired girl on the couch and a flood of memories came to him. He remembered saving Weasley, being sorted into Ravenclaw, solving the riddle, and bringing Weasley into the common room. He saw that Rose was asleep and stood up, quietly moving toward the door of his dorm. As the door closed loudly behind him, Scorpius cringed. With any luck, she had not woken.

Rose turned in her sleep and subconsciously realized she was in danger. Opening her eyes, she saw that she was on the edge of a couch, threatening to fall. She swung her legs over the side of the makeshift bed and saw a blanket and pillow that someone had left on the ground. She immediately thought, _Oh, Malfoy must have left it there,_ which led to realizations of all of the the previous day's events. Rose decided to go up to her dorm and see if any of the other girls were awake.

Scorpius, upon entering his dorm, scanned the room. Five bunks spread themselves out against the opposite wall, each of them labeled. Peyton Narroway, Brandon Davies, Evan Wood, and Laurence Turner were to be his new roommates. Scorpius found his trunk next to his bed and rummaged through it for a new set of robes. After all, Ravenclaw though he may be, Scorpius was not the most organized person.

Rose crept into her room and collapsed onto her bed. Her first day at Hogwarts had not been the broom ride she had expected. Her expectation had been to go Gryffindor, but she had tried to keep her mind as blank as possible when the Sorting Hat examined her. However, the distraction did not work, and she found herself dreading breakfast, when she knew the inevitable would come. She would have to face her cousins, and more than likely her parents. Sitting up, Rose glanced at the clock that read 7:08. She knew that this was a perfectly acceptable time to wake up for breakfast, and wondered why the other girls in her dorm had not risen.

Standing up from her bed, Rose grabbed a new set of robes and her toiletries and entered the bathroom. She knew the stress was nothing a good hot shower couldn't help.

Scorpius emerged from the shower quite refreshed, and found two of his dorm mates awake: one gathering items for a shower, the other reading a book on his bed.

The one with his nose in a book took no notice of Scorpius, but the other raised his head and offered a shy smile. "Hullo, there. You must be Scorpius Malfoy. I'm Narroway. Peyton, that is." Scorpius nodded as the boy straightened up to shake Scorpius's hand. Narroway was a tall, medium-built boy with pitch black hair and a friendly smile. Scorpius, being of average height himself, was relieved not to need to look up to Narroway very much.

"I'm pleased to meet you, Narroway. Did you want to use the shower? It's all yours." The boy nodded a thanks to Scorpius and left the room. Scorpius's curious eyes fell on the boy with the book. Approaching the area in a walk-through of the room, he noticed the name on the boy's bed. Laurence Turner, it read. Satisfied that the boy must surely come out sometime, Scorpius headed down to the common room.

Rose stepped out of the shower thoroughly rejuvenated. As she dressed, she wondered about her roommates. Who were they? Did they realize just who they had to accept into their room? Would they even accept her?

When she came out of the bathroom, Rose's dorm looked quite different from before. Three girls were scrambling around, grabbing hats and coats and scarves and putting them back right away. Almost immediately, the girls realized a newcomer was in their presence and rushed to her. Rose was attacked by a flurry of names and questions and was unable to ward the girls off. Finally, she imitated her mother's shrill whistle and the room froze.

"Thank you," Rose's steely voice announced. "Now, I do not appreciate the assault on my personage, but I will forgive you all if you just tell me your names." By the end of the sentence Rose smiled seeing that every girl had an astonished look on her face. "I learned from the best, girls, so don't be mad when I play a good joke on you," Rose laughed. Her roommates' faces were relaxing, and one girl went so far as to laugh.

"Of course you learned from the best, you're George Weasley's niece!" Rose raised an eyebrow in surprise at the upfront girl, who then introduced herself. "Emma Boot, by the way."

Rose nodded. "Boot? As in Terry Boot's daughter?" Emma's expression changed.

"You know my dad? No one ever..."

"My parents have mentioned him a few times."

The other girls were keen to officially meet Rose as well. "Abigail Carmichael."

"That's Amy Fawcett," one named the girl next to her.

"And that's Sarah Belby," Fawcett said, returning the favor.

Rose acknowledged each of them. "Very nice to meet all of you, but you do know we should probably be getting ready to go to breakfast?" When the girls nodded and resumed their frantic scurrying, Rose darted out of the dorm, then away from the Ravenclaw common room altogether. The Great Hall was her destination.

After wandering the corridors for what seemed like an hour, Rose heard the noises of a large group of people and found herself approaching the Great Hall. Foremost in her mind were her cousins. She had to set things straight before something got out of hand.

Rose beelined to the Gryffindor table and sat between Al and Molly. "I bet you all hate me."

Six Weasleys whipped around, utter shock shown on their faces. For the second time that morning, Rose was assaulted by a group of people that really meant her no harm.

"Why would we hate you?"

"It's not in your power anyway!"

"You're always our cousin, Rose."

Fred snickered at Molly's assurance. "Maybe we'd admit it if she pranked a little more..." Molly's glare was the only response.

Rose felt that one of her stress balloons had been quite deflated, so she excused herself to her own table in slightly higher spirits. She slid into a seat between an older Ravenclaw and Emma Boot.

"So you never did tell me how you knew my father?" Emma wondered.

"Oh, my parents mentioned that he was in Dumbledore's Army with them..." Rose drifted into a lively conversation with Emma, who she was finding very witty, a good change from the Weasleys' raw humor. They were finishing their breakfast when the owls swooped down to the tables.

Rose watched in silent terror as a small excited owl landed in front of her. Pig bounced around, waiting for Rose to remove the letter. "Still as hyper as always," she whispered.

Emma seemed to fade out of the background as Rose opened her letter, her father's words coming back to her.

"If you're not in Gryffindor we'll disinherit you, but no pressure." Rose shivered at the memory, though her mother had confirmed that her father was not serious.

The letter read:

_Dear Rosie, _

_Your father and I are very proud of you for making your way into Ravenclaw. You must have gotten some of those traits from me, because the Hat almost put me there as well. _

_I wish you had been more careful over the lake, Rosie, but it won't need to happen again, as you'll be using the carriages from now on. As for the Malfoy situation, you should definitely have been grateful, and still should be. After all, he did save your life. _

_I have not informed your father of your incident, for which I know you will be thankful, because I do not see it as anything important, or something that needs to be bothered with... _

_Hopefully you know that I do not push you into all of this anti-Malfoy attitude. Your father would rather you not get friendly with him, but he will understand as much as anyone the need to re-accept the one who has left the narrow way. _

_Love from, _

_Mum_

Rose let out a great sigh of relief. Her mother understood everything and didn't reprimand her for any of it. The final weight on her heart had been lifted.

For the remainder of her school year, Rose saw surprisingly little of the Malfoy Ravenclaw. He sat in the back of the class when she sat in the front. They regularly sat at opposite ends of the Ravenclaw table, and he was almost never seen lounging around in the common room. Rose received 100% on each of her finals, and was proud to discover that though Malfoy had received a few 100% exams, he had scored 98% in Herbology and 97% in Astronomy. The summer passed with not a thought of him in her mind. She had a new mission: Quidditch.

Rose jumped from the train onto the platform at Hogsmeade, with her best friend Emma close behind her. Emma was jabbering her jaw off about Rose's slip of the tongue on the train, which had revealed her desire to play Quidditch.

Since the day they met, Emma and Rose had been very near inseparable. Emma was impressed with Rose's humor and excited that she appreciated what her father, Terry, had done; Rose was glad that she was being accepted, and could make jokes and even play pranks every once in a while with a friend. However, Rose had in fact kept one secret from her best friend, though not quite for long enough

Climbing into a carriage, Rose found herself contemplating the road she took to find herself in this position. She realized her father had not been allowed to push her into playing the wizarding sport, under the orders of her mother. They had obviously assumed her to be as alike to Hermione athletically as she was in appearance and academics. However, the past summer Rose had taken it upon herself to play a pickup game of Quidditch with her cousins. She had, in fact, been assigned to the position of Keeper, and found that she was truly her father's daughter.

Upon hearing of this her father had brought up a past mention of a seventh year playing the Keeper position. In that case, the Ravenclaw team would be down a keeper, and he was sure Rose would be able to make it if she practiced.

And so it was that Rose had packed a brand new broom for her second year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Al was skeptical, saying that she might not want to bring her broom because she might not make the team. Before they left the train, Emma contradicted him, saying that even if she didn't make the team, she could still fly.

Rose and Emma reached the carriages and found one to ride in. Al found them as well and stayed with them. Though she knew that the thestrals were there, she had no wish to see them. She was satisfied with their invisible pulling abilities.

Emma, Rose and Al suffered a long, tedious trip to the castle, and as they approached the gate Rose was assaulted with a flashback of the lake fiasco from her previous year. Falling into the lake had undoubtedly been the most exciting thing to happen all year. Besides that first adventure, day after day tests had been given, homework completed, and spells learned.

Friday, two days later, Rose returned to the common room after classes only to see three or four people standing by the bulletin board, and more coming every moment. She approached to see that there was a notice about Quidditch. Her stomach clenched as she read that tryouts would be held a week from that Saturday, and as she left the board to look for Emma and maybe send a letter for help to her Aunt Ginny, she thought it curious that she saw Scorpius Malfoy approaching the board as she left it. Passing over that thought, she focused on the thing she awaited, but also dreaded.

Scorpius didn't notice when Weasley shot him an odd look, but rather took in the details of the Quidditch post. _8:30 AM, open tryout, 2__nd__-7__th__ years. _Scorpius set one of his impeccable mental alarms to awaken him at 8:00, knowing he wouldn't want breakfast, then locked away his nervousness in his mind and set off to do his homework.

Saturday, September 9. The sun shone and the birds sang. False harbinger, perhaps? Her hands shaking slightly, Rose pulled on her Aunt Ginny's old Quidditch robes. Her aunt, at Rose's request, had generously shrunk them down to Rose's size, and removed the offensive colors of Gryffindor. Rose's Flymaster was in her left hand as she made her way down to the Quidditch pitch. Scanning the stands, she saw many people awaiting the tryouts. Her nerves immediately peaked and she froze.

Quickly reprimanding herself, Rose warily made her way to the lineup for the Keeper position, where three others waited. Two were older students Rose didn't know, and the third was Malfoy. Rose was sure he had specifically planned to beat her out of the position, but she determined that she would not let him. (She didn't stop to think how he would have known in the first place.) Silently, she stood in line behind him, waiting for her instructions.

Once each position had an individual queue, the Captain called up three Beaters to work with the one Beater from the year before, two Keepers, and three Chasers to face the Chasers from last year's team. Rose and Scorpius were the first Keepers called. The tryouts proceeded like a regular Quidditch game, with the Chasers passing and shooting while the Keepers guarded goals and the Beaters, well, Beat. Rose saved five goals and let in three, while Malfoy saved five and let in two. Rose worried at the fact that her percentage of saves was lower than Malfoy's. She passed the remainder of the tryout in silence, not casting a single glance on anyone else, but appearing as a statue as she practically worked herself into a mental frenzy. Finally, the Seeker captain dismissed the hopefuls with a note that the team would be posted in the common room after dinner.

Downcast, Rose trudged her way back to the castle.

"Don't worry, Rose, I'm sure you'll get the spot!" Emma encouraged as they sat down to dinner. Rose, however, had no such security.

"I don't think I really have a chance. None of the other Keepers except Malfoy saved five, and I let in one more goal than he did." Rose sighed. "There goes my Quidditch career, I guess."

"Remember, though, this new captain said that every position would be open every year, so you might be able to beat him out next year!"

Rose didn't respond, but continued to eat her meal, or rather, push her food around nervously and appear to be eating her meal. Emma took the hint, and kept quiet about Quidditch for a while. However, they both knew that when they returned to the Common Room, the final team list would be posted.

As Rose left the table, she saw Malfoy about 6 metres ahead of her, and wondered if he had noticed her path and was in fact gloating at his obvious advantage.

However, Scorpius had no such thoughts. In fact, he was focused on the fact that although he had let in fewer goals than Weasley had, he had faced fewer shots on goal. He found his way to the Common Room bulletin board, unsure whether or not he wanted to look. Pausing for a moment, he approached the board, sensing someone else come up behind him as well.

_Keeper:_

Scorpius Malfoy, 2nd year

Scorpius heard a sharp intake of breath behind him, and turned to see Rose Weasley, looking reasonably upset and somewhat shocked.

"Sorry, Weasley. You played great out there. I thought you were going to get the spot."

Rose scoffed internally, sure that he was being sarcastic—_as Malfoys tend to be,_ she thought—but she could find no hint of malice in his countenance. Finally, she cast down her eyes, and muttered a "Good job."

"Alright, team." Kris Samuels, Ravenclaw's captain, called the first meeting to attention at 7:30 that night. As Scorpius listened, his mind was whirring, and he began to analyze the team dynamic presented before him. Though he knew he had little chance of affecting the patterns that would be set by this team, he had some ideas about its future.

After the meeting was adjourned, Scorpius approached Kris with one of his ideas. Agreeing with his sound logic, she immediately set out to make an idea a reality.

Rose knew nothing of this encounter, but instead, she lay on her bed, thinking of Quidditch, her parents, and her cousins. What would everyone think? She had already been sorted into Ravenclaw, and now she had not made the Quidditch team. Rose couldn't stand the thought that she had disappointed her family again. Of course, her parents had said they were very proud of her for being a Ravenclaw, but Rose couldn't help but remember her father's words at the beginning of her first year, and she didn't believe he had dismissed that as nothing.

All of a sudden, Rose heard someone entering the dorm, so she feigned an early sleep.

"Rose! Rose, wake up! You'll never guess what's happened!" Emma shook Rose, attempting to raise her from her bed. "There's a new post about Quidditch! Come on, I know you'll want to see this."

Rose rolled over, glared at Emma, and got up. She went to her trunk, but Emma interrupted her. "No need, everyone's in their pajamas looking over it!" She then proceeded to drag Rose down the stairs to the Common Room board. With Emma pushing her way through, the two of them quickly reached the announcement.

UPDATE:

Ravenclaw Quidditch Team:

_Seeker:_

Captain Kris Samuels, 5th year

The sheet continued to list the Ravenclaw Quidditch team members, but there was an additional section at the bottom, titled "Ravenclaw Reserve Quidditch Team." In shock, Rose eagerly scanned the list, and gasped when she saw her name at the bottom.

_Reserve Keeper:_

Rose Weasley, 2nd year

There will be a team meeting today at 18:00 to discuss strategies, etc.

Rose felt like she was going to hyperventilate, but instead, she engulfed Emma in a bear hug. "Thank you, thank you, thank you for waking me up! I have to go write my parents!" Rose left quickly as Emma laughed.

Scorpius noticed the exchange with satisfaction. He had really felt bad about defeating the daughter of "Weasley the Gryffindor King," but this allowed both of them to have a chance. He just wasn't sure how well she would take to playing opposite him, since he had, in fact, beat her out of the real position. _Well, it is what it is..._

Rose walked out to the pitch with her broom in hand, unsure what to expect from this first meeting. As she approached, only a few others actually had their brooms, so, taking the lead, Rose leaned her broom against the wall outside of the changing room and joined the circle.

Samuels addressed the team, explaining the purpose of the reserve team. "One of our newest members, Scorpius Malfoy, suggested that we have a reserve team to assist in the development of our team while preparing a new set of players to be able to fill in the spots once we lose older players..."

Scorpius could not believe Kris had actually brought him up. The idea that his name would be referred to had honestly not even crossed his mind. Now he scanned the faces around the circle and saw a few somewhat surprised and some indifferent faces. However, Rose Weasley looked about to burst, and he knew he would be confronted after the meeting.

Rose was fuming. She couldn't believe that the _Malfoy_ boy had introduced the idea of a reserve team so he could rub his victory in her face!

After some discussion, the teammates were dismissed, and Rose had the good sense to wait until they were both a fair distance from the captain before rounding on him. "What did you mean by taking such an opportunity to gloat in my face? Did you really think I wouldn't see it, Malfoy?"

"Don't call me Malfoy," he murmured.

"I'm of half a mind to quit the reserve team due to malicious intent! Malfoy, I'm sure I expected it, but—"

"Weasley!" Scorpius's tone was sharp, sharper than even he thought he had ever heard it. "I have no evil intentions, and I am not just a Malfoy." Weasley deflated at the mention of her judgment on him due to his name. "I am not a Death Eater, nor am I proud and self-serving as my father himself has told me he was at my age. Do you want to know, Weasley, why I brought up the idea of a reserve team?"

Roe was surprised at the steeliness in Malfoy's—no, Scorpius's eyes, his entire countenance. He waited for her to respond, so she nodded meekly. "I felt bad. I had no reason to be on the team, except my own pleasure. But you, you had something to live up to. Weasley the Gryffindor king could have gone on to play professionally, and I had stolen your spot from you, so I thought the least I could do was to give you another chance to play when you had seemed so let down at not making the team.

"And I don't think I want to be called Malfoy, either."

Rose sighed. "I'm sorry...Scorpius. I guess I inherited more from my dad than just my Keeper skills. I have a short temper and a tendency not to give up on grudges. But I guess...just call me Rose," she smiled.

Scorpius smiled back.

* * *

**Well, please please PLEASE review. Also, I'm going through ideas for a conflict/encounter for third year, and if you have any, they would be much appreciated! R&R!**


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